New Criminal Charges Filed Against Ex-FBI Officials in Hunter Biden Case
Federal prosecutors have brought new criminal charges against two former FBI counterintelligence officials, Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides. The charges allege that they obstructed a congressional proceeding and lied to lawmakers about their roles in the bureau's investigations concerning Hunter Biden. The unsigned and unsworn superseding complaint was filed early Tuesday morning, coinciding with the defendants' upcoming preliminary hearing in federal court in Washington, D.C.
During this hearing, the attorneys representing Floris and Benavides are expected to challenge the credibility of a government witness to assess whether there is sufficient probable cause to support the allegations. The Justice Department's decision to file this complaint against two senior former FBI officials, particularly so close to the midterm elections, has drawn scrutiny from former prosecutors and federal officials alike.
Typically, criminal complaints in felony cases are reserved for urgent situations, such as ongoing threats to public safety or national security. Justice Department guidelines generally advise against taking overt investigative actions in politically sensitive cases near national elections. The timing of this complaint has led to speculation about its political motivations.
Floris' legal team expressed concerns about the nature of the complaint, stating, "What is going on at the D.C. U.S. Attorney's Office? In the middle of the night, the government filed an unsigned and unsworn complaint attempting to fix the issues with their original charge against Ms. Floris and adding a new charge just as meritless as the first one." They further criticized the government's actions as an attempt to delay their client's right to challenge the charges in court.
Charges Linked to Congressional Testimonies
The charges stem from testimony provided by Floris and Benavides to a congressional committee on July 19, 2023, and September 28, 2023, respectively. The superseding complaint claims that the defendants knowingly provided materially false statements regarding their awareness of and involvement in the FBI's investigations into Hunter Biden, thereby corruptly obstructing the proper administration of the law.
Intelligence Reviewed
The complaint specifically addresses statements made during their testimony about their roles on the Foreign Influence Task Force and a counterintelligence operation known as "Round River," which aimed to collect derogatory informant reporting on Hunter Biden, flagging it as potential Russian disinformation ahead of the 2020 election. Floris served as the deputy assistant director of the Foreign Influence Task Force from mid-2019 to mid-2022, while Benavides was the section chief during the same period leading up to the 2020 election.
The allegations suggest that the defendants made false statements to minimize or conceal the Task Force's engagement with the Hunter Biden investigations and to impede the congressional inquiry.
